Speakers opinions

weavercr

Looking at adding another set of speakers to the 2ch rig. currently using RT55i. Have about 1000.00 in the budget. They will be used to play mostly classic rock, the 55s will get the jazz, blue grass and classic. Driving equipment Denon: PRA1100, POA2400a and DCD590.

I am considering the Polk RT150 at 1400.00, the B&W 604 s3 at 1050.00 and Klipsch KLF30 at 950.00 (NOS). All are new with 5 year warranties. I did not demo the Klipsch klf30, however I did demo the KLF20 which uses the same high and mid drivers. The difference is it that the 20 have dual 10inch drivers vice dual 12inch drivers in the 30 model. Has anyone done a side by side compare of the 20 and 30s. Any info on the difference would be appreciated. I favor polks but......Not powered ones.

I am looking for opinions not a shoot everyone down contest. I know I will get some flames just for considering other than polks....I currently own 5 pairs, 3 centers and 2 subs of polk manufacture.... the only non polk in the house is my daughter's yammies.

Frank Z

I've said it before and I'll say it again...Check out the Lsi's before you buy anything else!

weavercr

NO dealers in Charleston, Beaufort or Columbia SC.

LSi15 from a non authorized dealer will fit the budget, so how does the RT150 and the lsi15 compare?

This will be an A / B speaker setup where I will use a selected pair depending on the type of music I plan on listening to.
A is currently a pair of RTi55 and the B speaker is yet to be purchased. A will be bookshelf speakers and B will be Floor standing.

I plan on upgrading the 55 to lsi9 down the line. I am looking for NON powered towers for now.

TroyD

weaver,

Are you dead set on new speaks?

Reason I ask is, Peachtree Acoustics in Mt. Pleasant has a pair of Apogee Stage's with stands. I'm thinking that he would probably take a grand for them. Placement sensitive, but very very sweet.

BDT

gidrah

Actually, for strictly R&R, I'd suggest Klipsch. At least for an audition. It's a love or hate type thing.

mantis

LSi15 from a non authorized dealer will fit the budget, so how does the RT150 and the lsi15 compare?

I can't answer this for you,but I can give you my opnion.......

The Lsi15's destroy the rti150's in every way shape and form......except bigness or manlyness looking.
The rti150's I now have listened 2 twice.......and man they just don't do anything for me......if anything they did things to me.I won't sit here and kick em, but from what I heard I should.

No dealers around huh.......that sucks...seems like an occuring problem.I gotta drive over an hour to demo lsi....rti's are around the corner.

I bought the lsi15's before the rti150's where out.I'm in no way shape or form sorry.

fireshoes

A lot of people suggest Klipsch for rock...I'm NOT one of them. If fact, I really really dislike how they sound with rock. I could understand them being nice for home theater, but not music. To me, the Polks offer so much more midrange and bring a realistic, natural sound. I love the LSi15's with rock, and I would strongly encourage you to check them out, preferably somewhere that knows how to set them up properly. Placement is very important to them, IMO. Have fun!

mantis

Placement is everything.....

setup leads to focus
focus leads to imaging
imaging leads to happiness

I sense much happiness in you!!!!

jmanpolk

I really like my LSi's. I listen to all types of music. I know the choice is going to be hard. Like everyone else is saying. Demo you butt off and find something that suits your music tastes and what sounds best for you.

MxStYlEpOlKmAn

ooo klipsch chorus 1989 -- rock music...dont mix, can u say ear bleeding?

joe logston

mantis, you hit it right on the nose. no matter how good your system is if it is not set up right is not going to sound good

mhw58

You might think about getting some used SDA's. Ebay seems
to have a fair amount of them. I bought a pair of 1-C's for
$660 and couldn't be happier. I listent to a ton of classic
rock and they sound awesome. I also listen to a fair amount
of jazz and IMO, they are excellent for jazz also.
Mike

F1nut

Hey Mike,

Haven't seen you in while, been down in Mexico again? Hope all is well.

Jesse

MxStYlEpOlKmAn

in my op -- if these speaks are gonna be used for rock, dont go wit klipsch, unless u like a very high treble sound, which i dont and i think it gets very annoying after 30 minutes of listening...

weavercr

I found a used set of Klipsch KLF-30s for 250.00. I took them home to demo. I figure I can ebay them it I dont like them. I will do some testing this weekend.

TroyD

Where did you find them? How is the house coming?

BDT

weavercr

I am living in the new house, Still have a lot of things to do.

A thrift shop in JAX.

weavercr

I dont like the KLF-30, but the other half likes them....

RuSsMaN

Great, tell her to give you $250, and throw em in the woman-cave.

Cheers,
Russ

danger boy

i was at a friends house who has Klipsch chorus II driven by the high end Onkyo receiver. he does like rock mostly. but i gotta tell you guys... mixed with his 15" CHT Velodyne it sounded much better than my system. The Klipsch's seems just a little bright to me.. not ear bleedingly bright.. but would fatigue after hours upon hours of listening. So I would never rule out owning something made by Klipsch. I would demo them and take them into consideration, along with several other brands. I never rush into buying anything that costs say over $250 without first doing tons of home work. What sounds to bright to one person.. may sound just right to the next guy in line.

MxStYlEpOlKmAn

My dad has some 1989 Klipsch chorus, thos suckers are bright as el without their grills on!

mantis

dangerboy,

I would demo them and take them into consideration, along with several other brands. I never rush into buying anything that costs say over $250 without first doing tons of home work. What sounds to bright to one person.. may sound just right to the next guy in line.

You have good logic as I read it.I don't think buying anything audio and video without at least hearing it go first is wise.

What sounds good to you is always the way to go.Read it again, feel about it.................................................be it.....I say.....ALLDAY

danger boy

I wish more stereo shops would allow you to bring it home and demo it for a couple days. Some will, others will not.

Mx, it all does depend on what you are driving most speakers with. My friend is driving his with 140wpc Onkyo receiver. yeah they may be to bright for some, i found them to really be clear in the highs..nice mids, and certainly with 15" subs, and I think a 12" passive sub built into the Chorus. it did rock the house.

weavercr

Klipsch chorus II and The KLF -30 us the same High and Mid drivers. The Chorus ha a single 15 in low driver and The 30's have dual 12 low drivers. For my they are too brigth in the mids and a little harsh, but cotton in the mids really tame them down. They do rock, the base is strong and tight not boomy. Definitely
Troys in your face chest thumpinh clean base.

weavercr

For the price I paid how could you go wrong when I was seeing pairs in worse condition going for 750.00

weavercr

I am still wating on getting an LSI-15 demo. Tweeters moved into charleston, but of course they dont carry LSI. They look like a slightly enhanced circuit city.

johnnyamerika

A $1000 Budget? Consiter looking at these:

http://home.attbi.com/~ellisaudio/

Apex

Klipsch,can you say listener fatigue.I was at Tweeter listening to them,they didn't sound bad,just to damn over bearing at high volume.
I don't think Horns are well suited for home audio,i think they should stay in stadiums and big venues.

Go LSi,you'll never regret it.

polkatese

Weaver,
order a set of LSi15 from Crutchfield, listen to them for a month, and if budget is the main issue, return the pair for credit, and order it from non authorized internet store (although after having it for a month, I don't know if you are willing to put up with the inconvenience of returning this monster back).......by then, you would be as content to pay the extra $300 (diff between your budget and MSRP of LSi15)...either way, as Apex said, you'll never regret it...

abmarsh

I recently auditioned several sets of speakers while I was receiver shopping. I listened to the Klipsch RF-3s, 5s, and 7s. The 5s sounded better than the 3s and the 7s sounded better than the 5s. Overall, though, I don't think I recommend them. I just don't think the horn sound is very natural. It's shrill to me.

The Denon receivers sounded way too bright when matched to the Klipsch speakers. The Yamahas I auditioned sounded better, but I still didn't like it.

I agree that a good used set of old SDAs is a great choice. I've had my SDA-2As for almost 16 years and I'm still amazed at how good they sound. Their only drawback is their size - they're big.

Gary Robertson

I so very much agree with you about the horns.Tey rattle my ears in the most annoying way..As a real speaker is supposed to dissapear--the horns keep my attention on the unnatural ear piercing highs only..Horns are great for outside pa systems tho...as they throw the sound out at you where as the conventional tweets keep the sound in around the soundstage..